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the ethics of dag hammarskjöld
When more than 30 years later I found myself in the position
of Under-Secretary-General for Legal Affairs and the Legal
Counsel of the United Nations it was natural to seek direction
in Dag Hammarskjöld’s writings and thinking. In particular,
I found guidance in an address that he gave at Oxford University
on 30 May 1961, ‘The International Civil Service in Law
and in Fact’.
I have therefore chosen this address by Dag Hammarskjöld as
a basis for my speech today, which I have entitled ‘The Need
for the Rule of Law in International Affairs’.
However, before we dwell upon the subject that Dag Hammarskjöld
focused on in his address, let me first set the scene.
Looking at the situation in the world today, I believe that it is
fair to say that the need for the rule of law in international affairs
has never been greater. The challenges that humankind
faces in our days of globalisation are tremendous.
The first challenge that comes to mind is the same as the
overriding challenge in 1945 when the UN Charter was
adopted: international peace and security. The purpose of
the United Nations is to ‘save succeeding generations from
the scourge of war’. And yet, there are so many conflicts
going on in our days.
A worldwide survey of conflicts is soon to be published. It was
carried out by the International Institute of Higher Studies
in Criminal Sciences (ISISC). The research and data amassed
shows that between 1945 and 2008, some 310 conflicts took
place. Depending on the estimates, the number of the victims
of these conflicts fluctuates between 92 and 101 million
casualties. This is twice the combined casualties of World
Wars I and II. According to Professor Peter Wallensteen, this
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